Bullpen candidate Luis Vasquez is among three pitchers whose arrival to Braves spring training has been delayed by visa issues in their Dominican homeland.
The others are non-roster invitees Atahualpo Severino and Lay Batista, a hard-throwing 24-year-old who had a 3.38 ERA and 89 strikeouts in 122-2/3 innings in 22 starts for the Angels’ Double-A affiliate.
Of the three, Vasquez is the only one believed to have a shot at making the opening-day roster. The right-hander is a former Dodgers prospect whose performance improved drastically after he dropped down and began throwing sidearm a couple of years ago.
Vasquez, 27, signed as a minor league free agent while pitching this winter in the Dominican Republic, where he created a buzz among scouts by posting a 1.56 ERA and .086 opponents’ average in 22 relief appearances, with 19 strikeouts and three walks in 17-1/3 innings.
Manager Fredi Gonzalez said it wasn’t known when any of them would arrive in camp, and recalled that outfielder Luis Constanza missed more than a month of spring training last year for visa problems in the Dominican Republic.
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